Protect your home from burglary. The following are things burglars look for when scanning neighborhoods to rob.

The look of your house: Burglars operate in one of two ways. Either the burglary is totally random, or the burglar has scoped out the neighborhood in advance. Whichever the case, the burglar chooses your house because it looks easy to rob.

Thus, appearances are crucial to deterring burglars. Burglars, like anyone else, make their decisions on a risk-reward basis. If you make your house look tough to rob, the burglar will pass you over for another house.

Putting alarm system stickers or “beware of dog” signs around your house help deter a burglar. Park your fancy car in the garage and don’t keep an empty box from the new fancy TV you just purchased out on the curb for the trash man.

Burglars don’t like homes that attract attention: Because burglars want to get in and out as quick as possible, they will do everything they can to avoid attracting attention. Fight this by making your house bright and noisy. Install a motion sensor light or get a dog.

An empty house is an easy target: Burglars will case your house for when you are away or asleep. If newspapers are piled up in your driveway and the lights are out, you might as well invite the burglar inside.

Put your lights on timers and stop newspaper delivery when you are out of town.

Secure all windows and doors: Every exterior door should have a deadbolt and every window at least one latch. Also consider using sliding window locks on ground-floor windows, and use a dowel to secure sliding glass doors.

Even the best cat burglars have said that 90 percent of the time, they use gloves and a screwdriver over high-tech equipment. Walk around your house and think about where you would get in if you were a burglar. Whatever can be most easily pried open, unhinged, or wiggled loose will be the weak link in the proverbial chain.